The term “computer” was first used by Sir Thomas Browne in 1646 AD, or 329 BB (Before Bill) according to the Gatesian calendar. Coincidentally (perhaps?), the year zero of the Gatesian calendar, or 1975 AD, corresponds to Daniel Hillis and Brian Silverman’s sophomore years at MIT. And it was during this year the two had the retro idea of constructing a non-electronic computer—specifically, one made of Tinkertoys.

Four years later, after a somewhat disappointing version 1.0, the pair started work on what was to become the Great Tinkertoy Computer, which plays a mean game of tic-tac-toe and is now housed at the Mid-America Science Museum.

Here’s how it works:

ORLANDO, Florida, March 9 /PRNewswire/ --

- Attendees at The 18th CPM Resource Center Conference Hear Recommendations for Change in the Stimulus Plan Era

The healthcare industry has a unique opportunity to make valuable use of the billions allotted for healthcare information technology transformation in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the Stimulus Package, according to observations shared at the 18th CPM Resource Center (CPMRC) International Conference, held in Orlando, February 17-20, 2009. Rather than investing exclusively in new technologies, providers must simultaneously re-engineer workplace culture and patient care processes.

LONDON, March 9 /PRNewswire/ --

Rising numbers of baby boomers with eye-ailments and soaring medical costs are causing European consumers to demand innovative diet supplements to protect their eyes and curb any potential eye care-related expenses. The ability of supplements to alleviate blinding diseases such as age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma has opened up lucrative growth avenues in the market.

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VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 9 /PRNewswire/ --

- Plentyoffish.com takes official top rank as North America and the U.K.'s favorite Internet dating site.

Plentyoffish.com is now the official #1 online dating site in both the USA and the UK according to Hitwise* and is quickly gaining the reputation for being the site where people meet their true love. At least that's the case in San Diego, California.

READING, England, March 9 /PRNewswire/ --

- European Presence Headed by Former Juniper Networks EMEA VP to Provide Customers with Improved Mobile Voice and Unified Communications, Expanded Wireless Coverage and Reduced Mobile Costs

Agito Networks, Inc.(TM), the company delivering new technology in enterprise mobility, today announced the availability of its award-winning RoamAnywhere(TM) Mobility Router(TM) in Europe. The RoamAnywhere Mobility Router is the industry's most powerful enterprise fixed mobile convergence (eFMC) product, purpose built for enterprises to help them increase mobile worker productivity while reducing mobile costs.

There's no question that employees at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory have watched with some concern as the LHC got all the press about being the future of physics despite the fact it hadn't actually produced anything.    They have also quietly continued setting world records and are once again reminding people that Fermilab's Tevatron, currently the world's most powerful operating particle accelerator, is actually ahead, even in the race to find the as-yet undefined "Higgs particle."

Having a bad 2009?  It's only going to get worse when those printing presses they use to make more money finally break down.   But there is always a bright spot on dark days; babies.  

Researchers say they have found the first unambiguous evidence that an animal other than humans can make spontaneous plans for future events. The report in Current Biology highlights a decade of observations of a male chimpanzee calmly collecting stones and fashioning concrete discs that he would later use to hurl at zoo visitors.

While researchers have observed many ape behaviors that could involve planning both in the wild and in captivity, it generally hasn't been possible to judge whether they were really meeting a current or future need, he added. For instance, when a chimp breaks a twig for termite fishing or collects a stone for nut cracking, it can always be argued that they are motivated by immediate rather than future circumstances.

New data published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology suggest that relatively healthy women with severe depression are at increased risk of cardiac events, including sudden cardiac death (SCD) and fatal coronary heart disease (CHD). Researchers found that much of the relationship between depressive symptoms and cardiac events was mediated by cardiovascular disease risk factors, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking.